L to R.: James Lesure-guitar, Johnny O'Neal-piano/vocals, Paul Kreibich-drums and Chris Colangelo-bass©Glenn A. Mitchell

Singer/pianist and showman Johnny O’Neal made a marvelous debut at LAX’s Crowne Plaza Hotel on February 12th.  His show was invigorating and captivating and his music showed well as he played a number of seasoned standards, jazz tunes and romantic pre-Valentine’s Day songs.  His trio was completed with Chris Colangelo on bass and Paul Kreibich at his drums set.    

O’Neal hails from Detroit, MI and has some dynamic music credits: he played the roll of Art Tatum in the movie “Ray” about Ray Charles and opened for Oscar Peterson at Carnegie Hall in the mid-eighties. A series of notables have engaged his talents such as Ray Brown, Milt Jackson, Nancy Wilson, Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers, Lionel Hampton, Clark Terry and more. O’Neal is considered a “soulful” artist and plays the many jazz standards with a touch of “blues.”  He has also been inducted into the Jazz Hall of Fame.   

Lou Donaldson © Andrea Canter

Lou Donaldson is one of the most respect alto player with a career spanning over a half a century performing bebop, hard-bop and soul jazz. The Lou Donaldson Quartet featuring Randy Johnston on guitar, Akiko Tsuruga on organ, Fukushi Tainaka on drums along with Lou on alto sax will perform at the Jazz Bakery on  Tuesday, February 24th through Thursday, February 26th.

An 'old school' player, the octogenarian Donaldson states that his playing style is a cross between Charlie Parker and Johnny Hodges, adding, “you know, the people that I listened to when I was coming up”. The great jazz pianist, Horace Parlan said of Donaldson, "One of the unique qualities of Lou's work is that he incorporates a great deal of the whole jazz tradition in his playing. He's listened to just about everyone, and not only alto players. With this knowledge of the entire jazz language, Lou is definitely an individual voice." 

Monty Alexander © Andrea Canter

In a career spanning five decades, pianist Monty Alexander has built a reputation exploring the worlds of American jazz, popular song, and the music of his native Jamaica, finding in each a sincere spirit of musical expression. In the process, he has performed and recorded with artists from every corner of the musical universe: Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Ray Brown, Dizzy Gillespie, Sonny Rollins, Clark Terry, Quincy Jones, Ernest Ranglin, Barbara Hendricks, Sly Dunbar, and Robbie Shakespeare, among many others.